Docomomo US/WEWA mourns the loss and celebrates the life of architect Daniel Streissguth (1924 – 2020) who passed away on November 21, 2020 at the age of 96. He taught generations of UW Architecture students; was one of the architects of the Nuclear Reactor Building (demolished) and Gould Hall; and created, cultivated, and maintained Streissguth Gardens in North Capitol Hill (donated to the City of Seattle).
A memorial service will be held online on Thursday, December 3 at NOON. It will be live broadcast on YouTube and via Zoom. The YouTube site is not public, though fully open to anyone with the URL. The Zoom is a webinar, also open to everyone, but Zoom requires you to provide a username and email. The family will provide the URL for the recorded YouTube version after it has been created (hopefully Friday, December 4).
We share with you some thoughts about Dan from Docomomo US/WEWA co-founder and Board member Susan Boyle, who was also a student of his:
Architect Dan Streissguth was a compassionate teacher who offered insight and encouragement to all students in his University of Washington Architecture Department graduate design studios. He was also an accomplished Modern designer, as evidenced by his own house on northwest Capitol Hill and his contributions to the collaborative designs of the UW’s Gould Hall and former Nuclear Reactor building. Dan was also passionate about gardening. He and his wife, Ann, generously donated a one-acre hillside garden to the community, which was deeded to the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation after nurturing for decades. Streissguth Gardens, off the East Blaine Street stairway, is a beautiful woodland landscape at all times of the year. From the public stairs there are views of it, and also of the Streissguth Residence at 900 East Blaine Street. For those who cannot visit the site there is a book that Ann wrote in 2009, “In Love with a Hillside Garden.”
